Reprinted from Nature/Health magazine, December 1999/January 2000

Rather than hormone replacement therapy (HRT), millions of women are putting their faith in a remedy which has been used for 10,000 years, which is safe and amazingly effective: a cruciferous root vegetable from Peru called maca. Anthropologist Dr Viana Muller has brought this extraordinary remedy to the attention of the Western world. "Once in a decade a remedy used by native peoples for thousands of years comes to our attention and it seems so important to health that we wonder how we ever got along without it," Dr Muller says. "Maca is that kind of supplement. Now women have an alternative to hormone replacement therapy drugs. Maca works in an entirely different and more satisfactory way for most women than phytoestrogen herbs like black cohosh and licorice root. And men, too, find that maca can counteract the difficulties they may experience in maintaining good sexual relationships as they age, due to a general slowing down in the output of the endocrine glands."

Research

Dr Chacon has done the most important scientific work to date on the maca plant. She isolated four alkaloids from the maca root and carried out animal studies with male and female rats given either powdered maca root or the alkaloids. Females receiving either root powder or alkaloids showed multiple egg follicle maturation, while in males, significantly higher sperm production and motility rates were noted than in control groups.

Dr Chacon established that it was the alkaloids in the maca root, not its plant hormones, that produced fertility effects on the ovaries and testes of the rats. "These effects are measurable within 72 hours of dosing the animals," she said. She deduced that the alkaloids were acting on the hypothalamus-pituitary axis, which explains why both male and female rats were affected in a gender-appropriate manner. This also explains why the effects in humans are not limited to ovaries and testes, but also act on the adrenals, giving a feeling of greater energy and vitality, and on the pancreas and thyroid as well.

Dr Muller says, "Implications of Dr Chacon's discovery of the pituitary-stimulating effects of maca are enormous. What it means is that hormone replacement therapy - even the natural varieties - will no longer be the gold standard for optimising health from a holistic point of view."

Alternative to HRT

Dr Jorge Malaspina, a respected cardiologist, has been using maca in his practice in Lima, Peru, practice for over a decade. He says, "Maca does not cause the ovaries in women to atrophy, as conventional hormone replacement therapy does." This means that maca may be discontinued at any time without danger. He adds, "Different medicinal plants work on the ovaries by stimulating them. With maca, though, we should say that it 'regulates' the ovarian function."

Dr Malaspina reiterates what Dr Chacon says about the way maca regulates the organs of internal secretion, such as the pituitary, the adrenal glands, and the pancreas. He has also found maca to be effective even on women who have undergone complete hysterectomies. He describes one patient who had a serum oestradiol level of 15, which is very low. After two months on maca it went up to 75. He says that a level above 60 is an adequate postmenopausal level. "Maca enables the adrenals to make sufficient hormones to avoid symptoms", he says.

Dr Malaspina adamantly prefers maca therapy to HRT. "The presence of outside hormones circulating in the system sends a message to the pituitary and the hypothalamus that there is a sufficient quantity of hormones in the body, and so they stop producing them. When menopause arrives, then, the ovaries are atrophied and do not produce the oestrogen and progesterone which the body requires minimally to function. For this reason, I encourage women to start with maca before menopause. It seems to help the endocrine system to stay in balance."

"Natural Viagra"

Maca at a glance

What's in it: Proteins, as polypeptides, make up 11% of the dry maca root; calcium makes up 10% and magnesium and potassium are present in significant amounts. Other minerals include iron, silica, and traces of iodine, manganese zinc, copper, and sodium. Vitamins in maca are thiamin, riboflavin and ascorbic acid. The amino acid proteins in maca include aspartic acid, glutamic acid, serine, histidine, glycine, threonine, cystine, alanine, arginine, tyrosine, phenylalanine, valine, methionine, lysine, tryptophan, proline, hoproline, and sarcosine.

Benefits: According to doctors in Peru and the US, maca may be of benefit for:
Menopausal symptoms: Hot flashes, tender breasts, sleeplessness and emotional upsets, "brain fog", vaginal dryness
Osteoporosis: Significant bone rebuilding, improvement in bone density
Energy booster: Balances the endocrine system - thyroid, pituitary and adrenal glands
Male impotence
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Period problems: Pain, PMS, flooding and/or scant flow

	ROYAL MACA™ CAPSULES (Lepidium peruvianum chacon)   Adaptogen root vegetable from the Peruvian highlands. Stimulates the endocrine system. Traditionally used for:     Promote energy and mental focus*     Support healthy sex drive*     Support healthy erectile function*      Menopause - hot flashes*     Help maintain healthy bones * 180 capsules, 500mg. each A one to three month supply Our Price $34.95
	ROYAL MACA FOR WOMEN   WITH DIM™ CAPSULES  Certified Organic   Each capsule contains 100 mg of DIM as well as 400 mg of Organic Maca Powder.  Benefits Include:     Eliminate hot flashes*     Promote energy*     Support healthy sex drive*     Balance the endocrine system*     Maintain healthy bones*     Eliminate vaginal dryness*     Relieve PMS symptoms*     Helps body achieve a healthy balance between "good estrogen" and "bad estrogen"* Read more about DIM   90 capsules    400 mg. each capsule     A 25-50 day supply. Reg Price $36.95 Introductory Price $34.95
	ROYAL MACA FOR MEN   WITH DIM™ ? ZINC CAPSULES Certified Organic   Each Capsule Contains 100 mg. of DIM, 400 mg. of Certified Organic, Pre-Cooked (Gelatinized), Sun-Dried Maca Powder, and 6mg. of elemental zinc from zinc aspartate. DIM, short for diindylmethane, is the principal breakdown product from indole-3-carbinol, the phytonutrient found in raw broccoli, cabbage, and other cruciferous vegetables which reduce the risk for developing prostate enlargement and promoting healthy prostate cell formation. The zinc (in aspartate form) has been added to help balance testosterone and estrogen levels.     * Supports healthy libido ? erectile function*     * Supports energy and mood*     * Promotes a healthy prostate gland*     * Promotes a healthy level of free testosterone*     * Helps support a healthy ratio of “good” estrogen to “bad” estrogen*     * Promotes a healthy ratio of estrogen to testosterone*   90 capsules 400 mg. each capsule    A 25-50 day supply.   Reg Price $36.95 Introductory Price $34.95

*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. The products on this page are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.
   Estriol Creme
Progesterone Creme